Pennsylvania Business Central proudly congratulates all of the 41 young professionals and forward thinkers honored in the 2016 Foremost Under 40. Each honoree was selected by our editorial board for their grit and determination to keep growing in their chosen field.

The finalists featured in this year’s edition were picked by the editorial board from a long list of nominations that had been sent to us from chambers of commerce, local business leaders and interested readers. This year’s winners include social coordinators, self-starting entrepreneurs, lawyers, executive directors and business owners who rose to the occasion when they were needed.

Pennsylvania Business Central has been accepting nominations from our readership since mid-September. All submissions were collected and given to an editorial selection committee, which chose the final selections from the nominations received in recent weeks. The selection committee based its final selections on nominees who have made a positive impact on the Central Pennsylvania business community by consistently moving their business forward, adapting to major changes in their personal and professional life and giving back to the community through volunteering or mentoring.

We asked each selectee how they entered into their career and whether or not it was their first choice. Many of the answers show that the most successful members of the business community are driven, yet receptive to change. Some had to step into leadership roles unexpectedly, while others grew ideas for their businesses from unlikely inspirations.

Popular definitions of the Millennial generation state that someone needs to have been born between the years 1980 and 2000, meaning that it will only be four years until our annual Foremost Under 40 edition is comprised almost entirely of this generation, with only a few industrious members of Generation Z starting to show.

Every year brings a new pile of think pieces dedicated to either praising or deriding the coming generation. Many of the judgments of narcissism and overconfidence in these pieces are nearly identical to the ones applied to Generation X in the 90’s and the Baby Boomers in the 70’s, showing that maybe 20-year-olds have been naturally a little narcissistic and overconfident for a long time. But among all of the opinions, there are a few solid statistics and trends.

According to a 2012 report by the U.S. Chambers Foundation, Millennials: are digital natives, spending an average of 1.8 hours of their workday on social media; care about gender equality, the number of stay-at-home fathers has tripled in the past 10 years; and, most importantly for the purposes of this edition, are starting businesses at an increasing rate. Due in part to having started their professional lives in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, many Millennials have turned to creating their own revenue streams and have lost trust in the typical corporate structure. According to the same report, in 2011, Millennials launched nearly 160,000 startups each month and 29 percent of all entrepreneurs were 20 to 34 years old.

The editorial board at Pennsylvania Business Central believes that this year’s list captures this inevitable evolution of entrepreneurship within its 41 profiles and hopes that it will give our readers a solid picture of how the Pennsylvania business world will continue to grow in 2017 and beyond.

If you know one of the individuals honored, we encourage you to offer them congratulations in person or by sharing their profile on social media. Each profile will be posted on the Pennsylvania Business Central Facebook page throughout the following weeks.

Readers are also encouraged to begin nominating for our next two big issues: Top 100 People and Top 100 Organizations, which will hit the stands in January and February, respectively. To nominate a person or organization, go to our website and click on the Top 100 tab or simply give us a call at 814-278-1323. .

Commercial Account Assistant Gunn-Mowery, LL C Throughout her college career, Elizabeth interned at Stone & Edwards Insurance Agency located in Camp Hill, Pa. This experience sparked her original interest in the insurance agency. More...

Owner Visual Element Media Scott Cunningham started his business while attending the South Hills School of Business & Technology in 2008 as part of a class project. He took that plan and put it to work launching his company in Pittsburgh. More...

Owner Lang’s Chocolates William Lang is the owner of Lang’s Chocolates, LLC. His store specializes in making hand-crafted gourmet chocolates that are Kof-K Kosher certified. Lang is self-taught and learned by doing. More...

City Manager City of Johnstown Melissa Komar is a 1997 graduate of Johnstown High School and a 2001 graduate of the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown where she obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in geography. More...

Principal Architect Stiffler, McGraw & Associates, Inc. Brian Endler attended Lehigh University and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in architecture while achieving all league status as a wide receiver on the football team. More...

Owner Brannon & Royer Septic Services, LL C The unexpected death of his father in 2010 drew Rich Royer to taking over the family business, Brannon and Royer Septic Services, LLC, a septic and portable toilet service business located in Mifflin C More...

Coordinator for Early College and Instructional Affairs After briefly pursuing a career in healthcare, Tiffany Boone decided to attend Allegany College of Maryland and complete her associate’s degree in general studies. More...

VP of Engineering Blair Companies As VP of engineering at Blair Companies, Vince Iapalucci is responsible for leading and developing an engineering team with deep expertise in all types of sign manufacturing, LED lighting and rapid prototyping. More...